The Oceanography Society
The Oceanography Society is a 1988-founded international nonprofit professional membership organization that publishes the open access Oceanography journal, hosts biennial conferences, runs an honors program, and serves ocean scientists, students, and institutions globally.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1988
- HeadquartersRockville, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What The Oceanography Society does
The Oceanography Society (TOS) is an international nonprofit professional membership organization founded in 1988 to disseminate knowledge of oceanography and its application through research and education. It is headquartered in Rockville, Maryland, operates with 1-10 employees, and serves a globally distributed community of ocean scientists, students, early-career researchers, educators, and corporate/institutional members.
Its core product is Oceanography, an open access peer-reviewed journal published as both a digital flipbook library and a print magazine, supplemented by recurring content series (Career Profiles, DIY Oceanography, Hands-On Oceanography) and special-issue supplements such as Frontiers in Ocean Observing. The society also operates a Jobs Center, a webinar series (Hidden Curriculum), educational publications in multiple languages, and a comprehensive honors program (TOS Fellows, Broecker/Jerlov/Munk/Sears medals, Early Career, Mentoring, and Ocean Observing Team awards). Event programming includes biennial conferences — the Ocean Sciences Meeting (co-organized with AGU and ASLO) and Ocean Optics Conference — rotating through international venues.
TOS generates revenue through individual and institutional membership dues (Student, Early Career, Regular, Sponsoring, Associate, Corporate/Institutional tiers), event and conference registration, and magazine subscriptions, with distribution primarily digital via tos.org, memberclicks.net membership platform, and multi-channel social media presence. The society has no parent company, external investors, or subsidiaries, and is governed by a Council under President Paula Bontempi with Executive Director Jennifer Ramarui managing operations.
The Oceanography Society firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- The Oceanography Society
- Legal name
- The Oceanography Society
- Website
- https://tos.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1988
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- The Oceanography Society is a 1988-founded international nonprofit professional membership organization that publishes the open access Oceanography journal, hosts biennial conferences, runs an honors program, and serves ocean scientists, students, and institutions globally.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
The Oceanography Society industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Scientific Publishing and Professional Association Services
- NAICS
- Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services (541)
- SIC
- Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Marine & Freshwater Conservation (BPAGAGAE)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Oceans, Coastal & Marine Resource Management (BPADALAI)
Keywords
Where The Oceanography Society is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Rockville
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
The Oceanography Society business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others
Revenue model
- Membership Dues: The society generates revenue through various membership categories including Student, Early Career, Regular, Sponsoring, Associate, and Corporate/Institutional memberships.
- Event and Conference Registration: Revenue from hosting and sponsoring events including the Ocean Sciences Meeting and Ocean Optics Conference.
- Magazine Subscriptions: Oceanography magazine subscriptions available for members and non-members.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Annual | Multiple membership tiers available |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels7 records
The Oceanography Society product offering
Product offeringCore offering
The Oceanography Society is a nonprofit professional membership organization that disseminates knowledge of oceanography primarily through its open access, peer-reviewed journal Oceanography and a portfolio of complementary publications, educational resources, and career development tools. It operates tiered individual and corporate/institutional memberships, and organizes major international conferences including the Ocean Sciences Meeting and the Ocean Optics Conference. The society also runs an honors program that confers Fellows status and prestigious medals (Broecker, Jerlov, Munk, Sears) plus Early Career, Mentoring, and Ocean Observing Team Awards.
Product overview
The Oceanography Society is a professional membership organization that operates as a unified portfolio centered on its flagship peer-reviewed journal Oceanography (open access publication) and extends through multiple complementary products and services. The core product is Oceanography Magazine, which is supported by specialized content series including Career Profiles, DIY Oceanography, and Hands-On Oceanography. Educational offerings include the Teaching Physical Concepts in Oceanography supplement and the Education and Public Outreach Guide. Professional development resources include the Scientifically Speaking guide, Hidden Curriculum Webinar Series, and the Grad Student/Early Career Resources portal. The society also operates the TOS Honors Program (Fellows, Medals, Awards) and organizes major conferences including the Ocean Sciences Meeting and Ocean Optics Conference. The organization serves its global membership through publications, events, career resources, and honors recognition.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Oceanography Magazine The official open access peer-reviewed journal of The Oceanography Society, featuring articles that chronicle all aspects of ocean science and its applications, including news, meeting reports, book reviews, public policy, and education content. Available digitally with an option for print subscription, with a digital flipbook kiosk at oceanographydigital.tos.org.
- Ocean Sciences Meeting
Quantifiable outcome
- Nearly 100 career profiles published to advise graduate students on non-academic career options
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use The Oceanography Society
Customer profileNamed customers4 records
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
The Oceanography Society technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
The Oceanography Society partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and flagship.
- Sea-Bird ScientificcoreCo-hosted the 'Forging Your Career in Academia and Industry' webinar featuring TOS President Deborah Bronk and Sea-Bird Scientific executives Genevieve Howell and Jochen Klinke. Sea-Bird Scientific provides oceanographic instrumentation.
- Sequoia Scientific, Inc.coreCo-hosted webinars with Sequoia Scientific, Inc., including the Sediment Resuspension Observations webinar featuring Travis Miles from Rutgers University. Sequoia Scientific specializes in laser in situ scattering and transmissometry (LISST) particle analyzers.
- GO-SHIP (Global Ocean Ship-Based Hydrographic Investigations Program)flagshipGO-SHIP is an international consortium of 19 nations coordinating 55 hydrographic sections globally. TOS awarded the 2026 Ocean Observing Team Award to the GO-SHIP Team for 20 years of internationally coordinated hydrographic measurements documenting decadal changes in ocean circulation, heat, carbon, oxygen, and nutrients.
Scale indicators2 records
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights5 records
The Oceanography Society competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- American Meteorological Society (AMS): Atmospheric and related sciences professional society with peer-reviewed journals and conferences. Comparable as a membership society with journals and meetings covering adjacent ocean-atmosphere topics such as air-sea interaction relevant to TOS members.
- Geological Society of America (GSA): Large earth sciences professional society with peer-reviewed journals and a large annual meeting. Comparable in scale and operating model, with adjacent disciplines to marine geoscience communities served by TOS.
- European Geosciences Union (EGU): European-based geosciences society hosting a large annual assembly that includes ocean sciences sessions. Comparable as a peer-reviewed publisher and large international convener in the same broad domain as TOS.
Direct peers
- American Geophysical Union (AGU): Large geosciences professional society that co-organizes the Ocean Sciences Meeting with TOS and ASLO. Directly comparable as a peer-reviewed publisher and member society serving overlapping earth and ocean science communities.
- Marine Technology Society (MTS): Professional society focused on marine technology and ocean engineering. Comparable as a member organization, conference organizer, and publisher serving an overlapping ocean community, especially relevant given TOS's Ocean Optics Conference focus.
- International Association for the Physical Sciences of the Oceans (IAPSO): International association devoted to physical oceanography within IUGG. Directly comparable as a learned society serving oceanographers, with similar aims of promoting international cooperation and scientific exchange.
- Association for the Sciences of Limnology and Oceanography (ASLO): Aquatic sciences professional society that co-hosts the Ocean Sciences Meeting and serves an overlapping researcher and student membership. Comparable as a peer-reviewed publisher (L&O journals) and member society in ocean and freshwater sciences.
Emerging players
- International Oceanographic Commission (IOC/UNESCO): Intergovernmental body coordinating global ocean science capacity building and observation. Comparable as an international convener and standard-setter in ocean research, complementary rather than substitutive to TOS's professional society role.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
The Oceanography Society social profiles
Digital presenceThe Oceanography Society financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
The Oceanography Society leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
The Oceanography Society funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
The Oceanography Society M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about The Oceanography Society
What does The Oceanography Society do?
The Oceanography Society is a nonprofit professional membership organization that disseminates knowledge of oceanography primarily through its open access, peer-reviewed journal Oceanography and a portfolio of complementary publications, educational resources, and career development tools. It operates tiered individual and corporate/institutional memberships, and organizes major international conferences including the Ocean Sciences Meeting and the Ocean Optics Conference. The society also runs an honors program that confers Fellows status and prestigious medals (Broecker, Jerlov, Munk, Sears) plus Early Career, Mentoring, and Ocean Observing Team Awards.
Is The Oceanography Society a public or private company?
The Oceanography Society is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was The Oceanography Society founded?
The Oceanography Society was founded in 1988. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is The Oceanography Society based?
The Oceanography Society is headquartered in Rockville, United States, in the North America region.
How does The Oceanography Society make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Membership Dues are the primary driver. The others are event and Conference Registration and magazine Subscriptions.
Who are The Oceanography Society's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are American Meteorological Society (AMS), Geological Society of America (GSA) and European Geosciences Union (EGU). Direct peers are American Geophysical Union (AGU), Marine Technology Society (MTS), International Association for the Physical Sciences of the Oceans (IAPSO) and Association for the Sciences of Limnology and Oceanography (ASLO). International Oceanographic Commission (IOC/UNESCO) is listed as an emerging player.
Does The Oceanography Society have an API?
No public API is recorded for The Oceanography Society.
What industry is The Oceanography Society in?
The Oceanography Society's product category is Scientific Publishing and Professional Association Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAGAGAE, Marine & Freshwater Conservation, with a secondary code of BPADALAI, Oceans, Coastal & Marine Resource Management. Its NAICS code is 541 and its SIC code is 8600.